JP4626074B2 - Vending machine control method - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a control method for a vending machine, and more specifically, it is possible to display the products in the front row automatically without any gaps to the rack gate position without performing troublesome data input work, The present invention relates to a method for controlling a vending machine capable of improving the visibility of products and preventing sales troubles.
[0002]
[Prior art]
2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, vending machines that can inspire customers to purchase products and view the products in the warehouse and their sales operations have been provided. As such a vending machine, there is known a vending machine that includes a rack that dispenses stored products one by one forward based on a sales order, and a catcher mechanism that receives the delivered products and transports them to a product outlet. It has been.
[0003]
Although the example of illustration is omitted, the catcher mechanism is configured to receive a product to be forwarded one by one from the rack one by one and move it to the product outlet based on a sales command, And an XY transfer device positioned in front of the rack. The product is filled in the longitudinal direction of the rack without any gaps.
[0004]
The bucket includes a gate opening / closing mechanism that opens and closes the gate at the front edge of the rack, a connecting gear that operates a rack product delivery mechanism (for example, a so-called pusher type or conveyor type mechanism), and a product delivered from the rack. A roller belt that is configured to receive and deliver the product to the outside of the bucket (product outlet), a product detection sensor that detects the received product, a conveyor motor that operates the coupling gear and the roller belt, and a bucket There is known one that includes a bucket flapper that opens and closes when a product is delivered to the outside and a bucket flapper opening and closing detection sensor that detects opening and closing of the bucket flapper.
[0005]
Next, basic operations of the catcher mechanism and the rack will be described. First, the bucket is transported by the XY transport device to the front position of the rack in which the products to be sold are stored based on the sales command. At this time, the coupling gear of the bucket meshes with the gear of the rack commodity delivery mechanism.
[0006]
Next, the bucket opens the gate of the rack by the gate opening / closing mechanism, operates the conveyor motor to drive the connecting gear, and drives the rack product delivery mechanism. The bucket receives the product delivered forward, and when this is detected by the product detection sensor, the conveyor motor is stopped to stop the product delivery operation of the rack, and the gate of the rack is closed by the gate opening / closing mechanism.
[0007]
In this way, the stop timing of the conveyor motor at the time of selling the product is stopped when the product is detected by the product detection sensor, so when the first product is sold, the gate and the second product are sold. A gap corresponding to the product depth dimension is generated between the two and a gap corresponding to the first product is formed. In the vending machine capable of seeing through the inside of the cabinet, this gap deteriorates the appearance of the inside of the cabinet, and the front row products of the rack are difficult to visually recognize. Therefore, in order to pack and display the second and subsequent products forward so that this gap is not formed, data for controlling the delivery operation (conveyor motor operation time) for each rack according to the products sold. Was previously input by remote control or keyboard operation.
[0008]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, with conventional vending machines, it is necessary to perform data input operations according to the products sold, and when the products handled are diversified, the input operations are very time-consuming, and data input mistakes can cause gate errors. There is a problem that a sales trouble such as an abnormal sales signal being detected and sales being stopped, such as a product being sent to the open / closed position and the gate cannot be closed, is likely to occur.
[0009]
The present invention has been made in view of the above, and it is possible to automatically pack and display the products in the front row to the gate position of the rack without any troublesome data input work, the appearance and the product in the warehouse An object of the present invention is to provide a method for controlling a vending machine capable of improving the visibility of the vending machine and preventing sales troubles.
[0010]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In order to achieve the above-described object, a method for controlling a vending machine according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a rack for delivering products stored in the depth direction one by one forward based on a sales command, and In the control method of a vending machine that has a catcher mechanism that detects and accepts the delivered product and transports it to the product take-out port while performing the product delivery operation, the delivery time of the first product to be delivered first And calculating the difference time with the payout time of the second product to be paid out next, and continuing the payout operation for the difference time from the time when it is detected that the third and subsequent products are paid out forward, The payout operation is stopped when the difference time has elapsed.
[0011]
Therefore, the troublesome data input work like the conventional one can be made unnecessary, the appearance in the warehouse and the visibility of the products in the front row can be improved, and the sales trouble due to the data input mistake can be prevented. This effect is particularly great for products having a greater depth than canned beverage products, plastic bottle beverage products, etc., such as products such as bento.
[0012]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a vending machine control method in which stored time data is reset when the filling door is opened and closed. As a result, it is not necessary to reset the time data at the time of product replenishment or replacement work, which further improves usability.
[0013]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, embodiments of a control method for a vending machine according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments.
[0014]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a control device of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a table showing product payout time for each column stored in a RAM, and FIG. It is a schematic diagram which shows process (a)-(b) with which the 1st goods are paid out, and defines time t1 until the 1st goods are detected. FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing processes (a) to (b) in which the second product in the rack is paid out, and defines a time t2 until the second product is detected. FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing processes (a) to (c) in which the third and subsequent products in the rack are paid out, and defines a difference time T (= t2−t1).
[0015]
The main control unit 1 includes a CPU 1a that controls the entire vending machine, a control program is stored in a ROM (not shown), and control data is stored in a RAM (not shown). A timer for measuring time, which will be described later, is provided in the main control unit 1. The main body control unit 2 controls the catcher mechanism 6, includes a ROM 3 and a RAM 4, and is connected to the main control unit 1 through a communication line 5.
[0016]
The ROM 3 stores a program necessary for the sales operation. For example, an operation control program for the conveyor motor 9 and a detection program by the product detection sensor 7 are stored. In addition, as shown in FIG. 2, the RAM 4 stores time data (t1-1 to tn-1, t1-2 to tn-2, later) for each column (the number of columns is an arbitrary integer n). T1 to Tn) are stored. The time data stored in the RAM 4 is reset by opening / closing a filling door (not shown).
[0017]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the catcher mechanism 6 receives a product G to be delivered forward one by one from the rack 10 based on a sales command from the main control unit 1, and supplies it to a product outlet (not shown). A bucket (not shown) to be carried out and an XY transfer device (not shown) for moving the bucket up and down and left and right to be positioned in front of an arbitrary rack 10 are configured. The product G is filled in the longitudinal direction of the rack 10 without any gaps, and for convenience of explanation, the reference signs # 1, # 2,..., #N are sequentially added from the product in the front (rack gate 11 side). It is.
[0018]
The bucket of the catcher mechanism 6 includes a gate opening / closing mechanism for opening / closing the rack gate 11 of the rack 10, a connecting gear for operating a commodity delivery mechanism (for example, a so-called pusher type or conveyor type mechanism) of the rack 10, 10 is a roller belt formed so as to be able to receive the product G paid out from 10 and to pay out the product G to the outside of the bucket (product outlet); the product detection sensor 7 for detecting the received product G; A conveyor motor 9 that operates gears and roller belts, a bucket flapper that opens and closes when the product G is sent from the bucket to the outside, and a bucket flapper opening / closing detection sensor 8 that detects opening and closing of the bucket flapper are provided.
[0019]
Next, basic operations of the catcher mechanism 6 and the rack 10 will be described. First, the bucket is transported by the XY transport device to the front position of the rack 10 in which the products to be sold are stored, based on the sales command from the main control unit 1. At this time, the coupling gear of the bucket meshes with the gear of the commodity delivery mechanism of the rack 10.
[0020]
Next, the bucket opens the rack gate 11 of the rack 10 by the gate opening / closing mechanism, operates the conveyor motor 9 to drive the connecting gear, and drives the commodity delivery mechanism of the rack 10. The bucket receives the product G delivered forward, and when this is detected by the product detection sensor 7, the conveyor motor 9 is stopped and the product delivery operation of the rack 10 is stopped, and the rack 10 is opened by a gate opening / closing mechanism. The rack gate 11 is closed.
[0021]
The payout time in the payout operation of the product G is defined as shown in FIGS. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the time t1 is such that the conveyor motor 9 is operated from the state where the gap between the rack gate 11 and the first product G (# 1) after the product replenishment is zero, and the product G (# 1 ) Is the time until it is detected by the commodity detection sensor 7 in the bucket.
[0022]
Also, as shown in FIG. 4A, when the first product G (# 1) is sold, the first product G is placed between the rack gate 11 and the second product G (# 2). A gap corresponding to (# 1) is formed. As shown in FIG. 4B, the time t2 is the time from when the conveyor motor 9 is operated from the state where there is a gap until the second product G (# 2) is detected by the product detection sensor 7 in the bucket. It is. Time T is the difference (= t2-t1) between the times t1 and t2.
[0023]
In addition, the bucket which received the goods G is conveyed to a goods take-out port by the said XY conveyance apparatus. Then, the conveyor motor 9 is driven again to operate the roller belt, and the commodity G is sent from the opened bucket flapper to the commodity outlet.
[0024]
Next, the control operation will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the control operation related to the measurement of the payout time of the first product, FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the control operation related to the measurement of the payout time of the second product, and FIG. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the payout operation for the third and subsequent products.
[0025]
Hereinafter, description will be given focusing on one arbitrary rack 10. First, the control operation relating to the measurement of the payout time of the first product G (# 1) will be described based on FIG. 6 and FIG. Here, it is assumed that the catcher mechanism 6 has already been operated based on the operation command from the main body control unit 2 and the bucket is in a state in which the rack gate 11 of the predetermined rack 10 can be opened and a product can be received. The conveyor motor 9 is activated by an operation command from the main body control unit 2 (step S10), and a timer of the main control unit 1 is set to measure the time until product detection (step S11).
[0026]
When the conveyor motor 9 operates and the product delivery mechanism of the rack 10 is driven, the first product G (# 1) is delivered forward, and the timer operates until the product detection sensor 7 in the bucket detects product acceptance. (Step S12). When product acceptance is detected (Yes at step S12), the payout time of the first product is measured (step S13). Then, the main body controller 2 stops the conveyor motor 9 and puts it into a standby state (steps S14 and S15), and this payout time is stored as t1 in the RAM 4 (step S16).
[0027]
Next, the control operation relating to the measurement of the payout time of the second product G (# 2) will be described based on FIG. 7 and FIG. Also here, it is assumed that the catcher mechanism 6 has already been operated based on the operation command from the main body control unit 2 and the bucket is in a state in which the rack gate 11 of the rack 10 is opened to accept the product. The conveyor motor 9 is activated by an operation command from the main body control unit 2 (step S20), and a timer of the main control unit 1 is set to measure the time until product detection (step S21).
[0028]
When the conveyor motor 9 operates and the product delivery mechanism of the rack 10 is driven, the second product G (# 2) is delivered forward, and the timer operates until the product detection sensor 7 in the bucket detects product acceptance. (Step S22). When the product acceptance is detected (Yes at Step S22), the payout time of the second product is measured (Step S23). Then, the main body control unit 2 stops the conveyor motor 9 and puts it into a standby state (step S24, step S25), and this payout time is stored in the RAM 4 as t2 (step S26). The payout times t1 and t2 are measured for each rack 10.
[0029]
Next, the control operation relating to the determination of the payout time for the third and subsequent products will be described with reference to FIG. It is determined whether or not two or more products have been sold in the same rack 10 (step S30). If two or more products have been sold (Yes at step S30), the difference between the payout time t1 of the first product G (# 1) and the payout time t2 of the second product G (# 2) is obtained. This is set as T (step S31) and stored in the RAM 4 (step S32).
[0030]
Next, the payout operation of the third and subsequent products will be described with reference to FIGS. As shown in FIG. 5A, after the second product G (# 2) has been paid out, the third and subsequent products (# 3) are determined by the difference T in the payout time between the first and second products. , # 4... #N) and a certain gap are formed between the rack gate 11. Accordingly, the purpose of the present invention is to operate the conveyor motor 9 for the difference time T corresponding to the gap to advance the third and subsequent products so that no gap is formed between the rack gate 11 and the rack gate 11. .
[0031]
That is, the conveyor motor 9 is activated (step S40), and when the third product G (# 3) is paid out forward and detected by the product detection sensor 7 in the bucket (step S41 affirmative), the difference time T Is set in the timer of the main control unit 1 (step S42). And if this difference time T passes, the conveyor motor 9 will be stopped (step S43 affirmation, step S44), and it will be in a standby state (step S45).
[0032]
Note that the time data (t1, t2, T) stored in the RAM 4 is automatically reset by opening and closing the filling door. Therefore, it is necessary to reset the time data when replenishing or replacing the product. There is no.
[0033]
As described above, according to the control method of the vending machine according to this embodiment, the conveyor motor 9 is operated only for the difference time T between the payout times of the first and second products, and the third and subsequent products. Can be automatically advanced to prevent a gap from being formed between the rack gate 11 and the conventional troublesome data input operation can be dispensed with. Visibility can be improved and sales troubles due to data input mistakes can be prevented. This effect is particularly great for products having a greater depth than canned beverage products, plastic bottle beverage products, etc., such as products such as bento.
[0034]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, according to the control method of the vending machine according to the present invention (Claim 1), the rack that delivers the products stored in the depth direction one by one forward based on the sales command, and the rack In the control method of a vending machine that has a catcher mechanism that detects and accepts the delivered product and transports it to the product take-out port while performing the product delivery operation, the delivery time of the first product to be delivered first And calculating the difference time with the payout time of the second product to be paid out next, and continuing the payout operation for the difference time from the time when it is detected that the third and subsequent products are paid out forward, since the difference time has to stop the payout behavior at the time that has elapsed, the troublesome data input work, such as in the prior art can be eliminated, the appearance and the front row of the visibility of the items in the refrigerator It is possible to above, it is possible to prevent the sale trouble due to an input error of the data. This effect is particularly great for products having a greater depth than canned beverage products, plastic bottle beverage products, etc., such as products such as bento.
[0035]
Further, according to the control method of the vending machine according to the present invention (Claim 2), the stored time data is reset when the filling door is opened and closed. There is no need to reset the data, making it easier to use.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a control device of a vending machine according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a table showing product payout time for each column stored in a RAM.
FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing processes (a) to (b) in which a first product in a rack is paid out.
FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing processes (a) to (b) in which a second product in a rack is paid out.
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing processes (a) to (c) in which products after the third rack are paid out.
FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a control operation related to measurement of a payout time of the first product.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a control operation related to measurement of a payout time of a second product.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing a control operation related to determination of a payout time for third and subsequent products.
FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation for paying out third and subsequent products.
[Explanation of symbols]
1 Main control unit 1a CPU
2 Control unit 3 ROM
4 RAM
5 Communication line 6 Catcher mechanism 7 Product detection sensor 8 Bucket flapper open / close detection sensor 9 Conveyor motor G Product 10 Rack 11 Rack gate

Claims (2)

A rack that delivers products housed in the depth direction forward one by one based on sales orders;
In the control method of the vending machine provided with a catcher mechanism for causing the rack to perform a product delivery operation, detecting the received product, receiving it, and transporting it to the product outlet,
When the difference time between the payout time of the first product to be paid out first and the payout time of the second product to be paid out next is calculated, and it is detected that the third and subsequent products are paid out forward The payout operation is continued for the difference time, and the payout operation is stopped when the difference time elapses .   2. The method for controlling a vending machine according to claim 1, wherein the stored time data is reset when the filling door is opened and closed.

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